Register Now

In order to be able to post messages on the German Shepherd Dog Forums forums, you must first register.
Please enter your desired user name, your email address and other required details in the form below.

User Name:

Password

Please enter a password for your user account. Note that passwords are case-sensitive.

Password:

Confirm Password:

Email Address

Please enter a valid email address for yourself.

Email Address:

Security Question

While balancing on a piece of wood, two inches by four inches known as a 2x4, john and his friend sally both spotted a dalmatian inside a truck with sirens, headed to put out a fire. State what the 2x4 is made of.

Log-in

User Name

Remember Me?

Password

Human Verification

In order to verify that you are a human and not a spam bot, please enter the answer into the following box below based on the instructions contained in the graphic.

Additional Options

Miscellaneous Options

Automatically parse links in text

Automatically embed media (requires automatic parsing of links in text to be on).

Automatically retrieve titles from external links

Topic Review (Newest First)

08-20-2014 05:55 PM

N Smith

Swimming is my number #1 for low stress, but only builds a small amount of muscle. I still do it and kayaking with my dogs in life vests has provided quite exhaustive exercise even when it is hot out.

What I have done in the past is increase caloric intake as of day 1 of your routine. I would start to road work her (preferable on trails if at all possible) but start slow and build up.

Will she retrieve? If so, I will find a nice steep hill (that is safe for them to run up and down) and stand at the top of it. I will throw the ball down the hill for them to chase. Then I will go down the hill and throw the ball up. I have worked my dogs up to 45 minutes of this when they were in top condition. I am just coming off whelping and raising two litters of puppies, so we will start this again soon LOL

A few other core building exercises, include getting them to do some "crunches" I call them. Have your dog sit and then without standing up, just using their back muscles, go into a "sit pretty" then back down again. I do that 5 reps, 5 times.

Then you can get them to learn to balance on their hind legs to get a treat from your hand. They should hold themselves up and not use any part of your body to steady themselves.

Backpacking is GREAT for building muscle, and I use actual weight dumbbells, so I can track how much my dogs can carry and see if they increase throughout a certain time goal.

Jumping!! You need to make sure you work up to different jump heights and teach your dog how to approach and land correctly to avoid injury. What I have done in the past is set up a straight line course with a small jump, A-Frame (high almost a vertical wall), medium jump, 1 meter jump, small jump. Run the dog through that a few times a week and you will see some crazy rear, back and shoulder muscles in no time.

Hope this helps!

08-20-2014 05:04 PM

Liesje

Athena looks great to me. Is there a reason you are worried about her weight? If she's active and her coat, eyes, teeth, etc are healthy I would not change anything. I would exercise for more muscle before feeding more or giving her a ton of calories like satin balls just for weight. 56lb is perfectly normal for a female. The male looks heavy, especially considering his age. My 10 month old intact male is 51lbs, lol.

08-20-2014 02:42 PM

Athena'sMom

Quote:

Originally Posted by N Smith

How old are they? Are they spayed/neutered? If so, at what age?

Sinister does seem a little heavy (not by much tho), but looks very well muscled. From the pictures, Athena looks the correct "weight" but seems to have very little muscleing, which can make a thin dog looks A LOT thinner than they actually are.

So just wondering if she is young and has yet to "fill out". But even then, my 21" at the withers 58lb female has way more muscle than your girl, even as a young dog her front end was well defined, just petite.

I would say you could increase her weight as long as her exercise routine allows for that to be turned into muscle and not just adding fat to her mid-section. If her shoulders and rear had more muscle I would say her mid-section would be almost perfect

Really great advice! Thank You!
Athena is 18 months and unaltered and Sinister is 10 months unaltered.
Sinister is has way more muscled than Athena but also he is a little overweight. I agree Athena should put on more muscle than fat. Any tips for a good workout to put muscle on her?

08-20-2014 01:55 PM

N Smith

How old are they? Are they spayed/neutered? If so, at what age?

Sinister does seem a little heavy (not by much tho), but looks very well muscled. From the pictures, Athena looks the correct "weight" but seems to have very little muscleing, which can make a thin dog looks A LOT thinner than they actually are.

So just wondering if she is young and has yet to "fill out". But even then, my 21" at the withers 58lb female has way more muscle than your girl, even as a young dog her front end was well defined, just petite.

I would say you could increase her weight as long as her exercise routine allows for that to be turned into muscle and not just adding fat to her mid-section. If her shoulders and rear had more muscle I would say her mid-section would be almost perfect

08-20-2014 01:05 PM

Athena'sMom

Yes Sinister is a chunky monkey and is on a diet LOL!!!!

08-20-2014 01:03 PM

Lucy Dog

If anything, sinister looks a little chunky and could probably lose a few pounds. Athena looks perfectly fine.

08-20-2014 12:58 PM

Athena'sMom

18 month old female vs. my 10 month old male.

Athena is a petite female, weighing 56 lbs. and is 24 inches at her withers. She eats 3 cups a day of a blend of Blue Buffalo lamb and rice and Diamond naturals extreme athlete to try and beef her up a bit. She has not gained a pound. Her stools are great and I put her on a pro-biotic but still no weight gain.
Sinister on the other hand is a big boy who I have to take off the Diamond naturals blend because he has put on too much weight. Sinister is 80lbs+ and 27inches at the withers.
Both for the past month eat the same serving 3 cups a day yet Athena stay slender. Sinister has been dropped to two cups because his mid section has filled out and I want to keep him slender.
She is a lot more athletic than Sinister could that attribute to her small stature?
Here is some pics of my two fur babies. Should I supplement Athena with Satin balls or another high calorie treat?
Sinister (left) Athena LSC (right):
Athena (left) Sinister (right)
Athena:
Athena from the side: